The present invention relates to the construction of posts, poles or standards upon which fences are built and supported.
Posts have been in use for a multitude of applications amongst which are their use as vine props having prop wires, and posts for wire fences and especially posts for use in coral fencings having multiple wire strands or chicken wire-like running portions.
As far as these known types of posts for the aforementioned applications are concerned, a notable trend is discernable to depart from the conventional wooden post in favor of a post manufactured from plastic material. While such plastic posts have an essentially longer service life, they entail the problem of how to affix the necessary fencing wires to it. Various ways have been tried to facilitate the affixing of single wires, ropes, etc. on plastic posts or to basically find a proper way of doing so.
Thus it has been known to affix the tension wires of vine props by the use of tensioning bands which are wound around the pole, fixing the wire between the pole and the tensioning band. A wedge can be used as a closure for the tensioning band which wedge is introduced into tensioning orifices formed on the ends of the tensioning bands.
It has been demonstrated that this type of means for affixing the wires not only is very time consuming but it also does not afford a positive grip of the wire on the post. It has happended time and again that the tension of the tensioning band changes under the influence of the weather and under changing grip of the tensioning wires itself. The tensioning band eventually slides down the length of the post, so that the point of affixing the fencing wire is dislodged and changed.
In the quest for a simpler means for affixing the tensioning wires, a post has become known having on its surface a weg extending in longitudinal direction, projecting away from the surface, and extending at least over part of the entire length of the pole. The web is formed with recesses in which wires or similar objects can be affixed. These posts have been formed as plastic hollow profile pole or pipe sections; the webs forming an integral part of the post, and have a thickness not greater than the wall thickness of the hollow profile section. Longitudinal slots are punched in the webs which have an opening designed for the introduction of the wires and in which the wire may be hung.
The slots for the accomodation of the wires require a relatively wide web which, because of its inherently insignificant strength, may easily break off. In fact, there is the danger that parts of the web may break off, even while the slots are being punched. This danger of breakage is further increased during use of the post in forming the fence, because the wire introduced into said slots in subject to great tensile forces, and is not positively held in place within the slot. Furthermore, if the wire comes to rest near the introductory opening of the slot, it may be pulled out of the latter because of the tensile force acting on the wire, or if parts of a web have broken off near the opening of a slot, there is no further possibility of securely introducing or maintaining wire in the slots. If several slots along part of the web are broken, the entire post will become useless.
It is the object of the present invention, to provide an improved post of the afore-mentioned type in such a way as to significantly increase the number of wire receptacle slots without increasing the danger of breakage near said slots, and to eliminate any breakage of parts of the web even during fabrication and to assure that the wire introduced into aforesaid slot is positively held and will not disengage from said slot even under tensile forces of a considerable magnitude.
These objects, other objects and various advantages of the present invention will be seen from the foregoing disclosure of the present invention.